Sarah Palin’s Surprise

posted at 2:55 pm on July 6, 2009 by The Other McCain

“Her national political career is done,” NBC’s David Shuster declared, even before reports of her plans to resign had been confirmed. Other media types joined the rush to write Palin’s political obituary, with a Greek chorus of “conservative” commentators transparently eager to agree that her resignation represented proof that Palin is both unelectable to and unfit for higher office.
Of course, she had just exposed as fraudulent the pretended omniscience of the commentariat. None of them had predicted Palin’s resignation, and yet their latest oracular pronouncements — Ed Rollins told CNN she looked “terribly inept” — were treated as authoritative.
The punditocracy can’t predict Palin because she shares neither their perspective nor their assumptions. Her ascent to political stardom has been treated as a fluke by most of the GOP establishment for the simple reason that she doesn’t slavishly follow the standard script of Republican politicians.
Of course, in recent years this script usually has ended with “…and then the Democrats won,” suggesting the need for a re-write. . . .

Please read the whole thing. Sunday morning, I was driving back from Lake Weiss — where we’d shot our fabulous annual Fourth of July fireworks show — when the editor called asking me to write the column.

Of course, not all the commentators rushing to write finis on Palin’s career were of the Ed Rollins/David Schuster variety. Both Ace and Allahpundit hastened to endorse the pundit consensus.

I’ve got MSNBC on my office TV and the mid-day newsette just referred to Palin’s “baffling” resignation. It’s not baffling. Palin explained her reasons, and her reasons sounded entirely plausible to me. What baffles the pundits is the fact that it was (a) unexpected, and (b) doesn’t fit the established script for presidential hopefuls.

The people who pronounce themselves “baffled,” and who conclude that Palin has made a stupid move by resigning, are leaving a couple of things out of their calculations. First, Palin is a Christian who, in the past, has made straightforward reference to the will of God. What she believes — what she must believe — is that if it is God’s will that she become president, she will. Therefore, the conventional wisdom of the commetariat and all the advice from political “experts” are just so much noise to her.

Second, Palin’s closest adviser is her husband, Todd. He is not stupid. He is also not a man who will show up on TV and blabber his every thought for the sake of creating the impression that he knows everything.

Just because you don’t know what Sarah Palin is doing doesn’t mean that she doesn’t know what she’s doing.

Blowback

Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.

Comments

Sarah is so outside and above the pundits, she acts from a different paradigm. That’s why they don’t get it. Their thinking is too limited. She does answer to a higher power and that power isn’t political.

First, Palin is a Christian who, in the past, has made straightforward reference to the will of God. What she believes — what she must believe — is that if it is God’s will that she become president, she will. Therefore, the conventional wisdom of the commetariat and all the advice from political “experts” are just so much noise to her.

Poor Little Sarah, she could use the scorched earth tactics against Obama on the campaign trail, but that mean old liberal media is just too tough for her to function. Cry me a river. Conservatives beat us over the head about their strength, but when the going got tough Caribou Barbie bailed. Not ready for prime time, never will be. Sarah could club a baby seal to death on live tv and her cultists would defend her. Stick a fork in Sarah’s career, its over.

Poor Little Sarah, she could use the scorched earth tactics against Obama on the campaign trail, but that mean old liberal media is just too tough for her to function. Cry me a river. Conservatives beat us over the head about their strength, but when the going got tough Caribou Barbie bailed. Not ready for prime time, never will be. Sarah could club a baby seal to death on live tv and her cultists would defend her. Stick a fork in Sarah’s career, its over.

athensboy on July 7, 2009 at 7:20 AM

Uh oh, looks like the libtards have brought their pants pee’ing over to Hotair.

First, Palin is a Christian who, in the past, has made straightforward reference to the will of God. What she believes — what she must believe — is that if it is God’s will that she become president, she will.

God does not play at dice. And I don’t think politics interests Him much, either.

guntotinglibertarian on July 6, 2009 at 3:05 PM

I disagree – politics is of great interest to God, not in the way it is to us, because we do not know or control the future, He does. Scripture says that He sets up kings (read that as governments) and tears them down. God is also very much concerned with the lives of His children, and His children are concerned with following His will for their lives. This is where Palin is coming from when she talks about God’s will. She might not know what it is yet, but she must be convinced that it is for the moment God’s will that she leave her position as Governor of Alaska.

“The critics want to put you on a course of personal bankruptcy, so you can’t afford to serve,” she said, calling the attacks “bull crap.”

She said Obama is taking the country in the wrong direction, and while she wouldn’t reveal her future plans, indicated she has fight left in her.

“Average, hard-working Americans need to be able to get out there, unrestrained, and fight for what is right,” she said. “Fight for energy independence and national security, fight for a smaller government instead of this big government overgrowth that Obama is ushering in.”

“Obsessive partisanship” has hurt the party, she said, striking a more independent beat than the partisan tune she sang on the campaign trail.

“We have so many people who offer advice, but I’m going to continue to be, whether some of them like it or not, pretty darn independent, and not get wrapped up into a strong political machine that hasn’t been extremely successful in Some ways.”

“Most candidates, most public officials get to look into a camera and say, ‘you better leave your hands off my kids,’” she said. “Well I haven’t been able to say that. And that double standard that’s been applied, that’s been a little bit frustrating.”

“I want to work, right now, for people who are going to work either in office or out of office for the right things. Those principles that build up America, those who are inspired by the values of America, and will not deride or apologize for the values we hold as Americans.”

Sorry, but I feel you couldn’t be more wrong. Presidential politics has become a game of promoting personalities, not necessarily ideals. As proof, today we have a man elected President with no real experience in anything but voter fraud. He was elected due to his “packaged total personality”, even though he was pretty up front about hanging out with terrorists and being a Communist.
Without the media “package” sold to the truly stupid in this country,he never would of won. Therefor, we need an equally engaging personality to combat his evil force.
Ideals don’t get headlines or TV coverage.

Jeff from WI on July 6, 2009 at 3:57 PM

Way to completely miss my point. I actually said nothing whatsoever about how to get elected, or who can or should get elected. I was commenting that it is my belief that real change for the better will come from local and state governments banding together in opposition to the federal government. This is something that is already starting, and we need to encourage our states to put the feds on notice, that they have severely overstepped their constitutional mandate, and we aren’t going to take it anymore.

I agree that due to our media driven culture, anyone who gets elected will be someone with a dynamic public personality. Someone that appeals in soundbites, and can easily be sold to young people. I think Sarah Palin has the possibility of being that person. Definitely more so than other current possibles.

Her gubernatorial office made her a fixed target, with enemies filing frivolous ethics complaints that made Palin’s every move a potential legal action that burdened Alaska taxpayers.

This at least partly explains her enemies’ rage over her unexpected decision to resign on short notice. She thereby eludes the trap they had laid for her. She returns to the status of private citizen, where malevolent rumormongers can’t cloak their slander in bogus expressions of concern about “ethics.”

From the full American Spectator column by Robert Stacy McCain (The Other McCain)

The entire column, plus his other comments here are the best analysis I’ve seen on this so far.

Especially the parts I highlighted here. This along with the money it was costing her to defend herself against the false charges, plus the unprecidented savaging of her family, with media consent, plus the Dems and Obama targeting her so she would get nothing further done as Governor for Alaska or herself are the reasons she resigned.

These are the reasons she honestly and clearly stated. She says what she means.

And she will do more good for Conservatism as a private citizen raising money and drawing crowds for conservatives and becoming a leading voice of opposition against Obama’s Socialism/Marxism. Even if she never runs herself.

Palin is a Christian who, in the past, has made straightforward reference to the will of God. What she believes — what she must believe — is that if it is God’s will that she become president, she will. Therefore, the conventional wisdom of the commetariat and all the advice from political “experts” are just so much noise to her.

The Other McCain above

This point cannot be overlooked or stressed enough. This is how she thinks. She has said so over and over. And when she became Governor she asked her pastor for guidance and he quoted from the book of Ester.

Shortly after taking office as governor in 2006, Sarah Palin sent an e-mail message to Paul E. Riley, her former pastor in the Assembly of God Church, which her family began attending when she was a youth. She needed spiritual advice in how to do her new job, said Mr. Riley, who is 78 and retired from the church.

“She asked for a biblical example of people who were great leaders and what was the secret of their leadership,” Mr. Riley said.

He wrote back that she should read again from the Old Testament the story of Esther, a beauty queen who became a real one, gaining the king’s ear to avert the slaughter of the Jews and vanquish their enemies. When Esther is called to serve, God grants her a strength she never knew she had.

The RINOS are completely out of touch with the Average American Voter. They are clueless so they ape the Progressives, who are even more out of sync with the majority of Americans. We are still majority rule.

I am an Independent, they are now polling 78% negative to Obama’s policies. I don’t know who they thought they were voting for Denzel Washington? They rolled the dice and we all crapped out :) RINOS don’t know what they are “Ideologically” Meghan McCain suggested they be about free sexuality, which is nothing more than Hedonism, which is popular say in the Hollywood culture. So again they want to ape the leftest. The Republicans are not going to co opt the Hollywood crowd, and why would they want to? Anyone taken a look at the late Great State of California lately? So RINOS are pretty much just after political power at any cost. That isn’t the core principles of the Republican Party or Conservatives last time I looked.

The Progressives, put a bunch of minority groups together to win the election. (they are now splintering) I believe Obama over promised and over sold. He is a green politician after all. I don’t believe say Hillary Clinton, would be making half of the Public Relation mistakes he has made. Example: Covering Christian Symbols up at Georgetown University, that was dumb – how many folks identify Christian in this country and vote….answer a lot. Alienating and provoking voter backlash isn’t smart politics. I don’t think Progressives actually know what a Moderate American is they are so far to the left they can’t see Middle America.

We have discussed this in our house, (We are Independents) our bumper sticker for 2012 is Palin/Mitt or Mitt/Palin we don’t care who is on top of the ticket, that’s our ticket. Two people who have both been Governors, one has a back ground in business a “Rain Maker” The other a real reformer.

If Mitt Romney is behind any of the behind the scenes shenanigans trying to discredit Palin, he is making huge mistakes, he needs to get his priorities straight, and his ducks in a row :) They (Republicans) should have started rebuilding the Republican brand, the day after the last election. Core Values “Conservatism” They can’t take advantage of the backlash to this huge Progressive Mess if they are mired down in fighting. If they are smart they will take a cue from Palin.

Her speech was the closest thing to what I had enjoyed from a politician since Romney hit Michigan in the primaries.

Both presented refreshing water to the parched patriot. They came across as real, not staged and it is the staging the so-called friendly critics of the Right are complaining about. The left is simply sitting back and hoping the friendly critics of the Right finish her off for them

Poor Little Sarah, she could use the scorched earth tactics against Obama on the campaign trail, but that mean old liberal media is just too tough for her to function. Cry me a river. Conservatives beat us over the head about their strength, but when the going got tough Caribou Barbie bailed. Not ready for prime time, never will be. Sarah could club a baby seal to death on live tv and her cultists would defend her. Stick a fork in Sarah’s career, its over.

athensboy on July 7, 2009 at 7:20 AM

Yeah, and when her overall favorability ratings surpass your boy’s, will you be back to eat crow? LOL